Written by Daniel Roig, coordinator of the Children’s Home
Nepal is a country geographically diverse and interesting where we find the highest mountains in the world (the area of the Himalayas), 3000 meters high hills of lush vegetation (the area of the Hills) and plains that remind us of the Indian jungles (Zone of Therai). Nine of the children in the Children’s Home could visit some of these areas with their school friends these past weeks:
5th grade trip to Chitwan – Nature in Therai
Fifth grade is the last year that kids of Bhimphedi can study in the community school. From sixth they have to shift to the public school or go to another village (option chosen by all who can afford it).
This is why every year the community school organizes a day trip to farewell the students who have studied for 7 years at this school property of the community of Bhimphedi. This year the three kids from the Children’s Home studying 5th grade have been especially fortunate because they have gone to visit the natural park of Chitwan. They visited another Nepal they did not know: the jungle plains where you can find elephants, crocodiles, deers, rhinoceros of single horn…
10th grade trip to Pokhara and Gorkha – The Himalayas and history
Students of grade ten currently preparing for their final exams, they organized a trip of just a night out to not to harm their study. But do not think that this prevented them to do an ambitious plan: to catch a bus for eight hours to reach to Pokhara on the Annapurna feet. From the lake at 800 meters high you can see the mountains of 8,000 meters.
But it would be a shame to return direct to Bhimphedi, so the next day they did six hours of bus to reach to Gorkha, a historic town:
Prithivi Narayan Shah (1723-1775), King of the small kingdom of Gorkha, conquered many of the mini-kingdoms around and moved slowly toward the Kathmandu Valley. There he began to conquer kingdoms around to be able to isolate the valley. Impatience led him to attack twice on the city of Kirtipur, situated on a hill from which he was planning to do the final attack on the Kathmandu Valley. But in both cases he lost and paid a high price in his ranks. Finally he got the city of Kirtipur, they had to surrender due to the blockade of food and water supply. But the king was not merciful and cut off the noses of all the men of the city.
From Kirtipur, Prithivi Narayan Shah submitted to the other cities of the valley, establishing a single kingdom powerful enough to remain outside the influence of the British Empire, unlike the kingdoms in present India.
Already satisfied and exhausted the kids of class 10 took the bus again and did more than 10 hours of road to return to Bhimphedi. The next day the class of grade 10 was pretty empty.
The trip of 6th, 7th and 8th grades – The hills and religion
Children of sixth, seventh and eighth grades decided they did not want to be less, so they prepared a picnic. It is very common that families, schools, neighbors or cultural groups organize such a day trips: Take a bus to go to visit a temple. And there, near the temple, to have a good meal prepared over a wood fire. And of course they take a good speaker to play Bolliwood music and start dancing and singing to help to digest the heavy food.
Life and religion, food and celebration, dances and songs. Nepalese are able to mix modernity and tradition like no other can do.
For all other children of the Home do not worry because, although they didn’t go for a trip they had fun and good food in the center! Look at that chicken “croquetas”:
